Social Media Management, Communication Roles, and Their Effects on Communication practitioners’ Involvement in Strategic Management of Organizations in Greece

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article explores how communication management is being practiced in Greece and sheds light on the impact exerted by social media practice and knowledge of communication roles on practitioners’ involvement in organizations’ strategic management process. This article also tests how communication roles interact with the different aspects of social media management. To this end, a quantitative survey was conducted using an online self-administered questionnaire that was completed by 107 communication practitioners in Greece. Communicators in the sample exhibited more knowledge for the technician role and performed managerial tasks to a lesser extent. Greek practitioners are mainly involved in routine operations, but they also perform strategic tasks as they provide input in strategic planning by scanning the environment to identify issues and help management develop goals. Concerning their social media practice, they seem to be involved with tactical activities such as content creation and engagement enhancement. The results also show that social media activities did not influence practitioners’ involvement in strategic management, which was instead affected by the communication roles of manager and technician.